


Open Wounds

by DarkxPrince



Series: SWTOR Prompt Collections [9]
Category: Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-21
Updated: 2016-08-21
Packaged: 2018-08-10 03:31:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7828825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkxPrince/pseuds/DarkxPrince
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Several years after her mother's death, Draleeria visits her mother's grave and has an unexpected visiter.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Open Wounds

**Author's Note:**

> This snippet takes place after "Final Moments".

Draleeria stood before a great oak tree, its massive branches blocking much of the endless rain of Dromund Kaas. She always came here, every year on this day ... the day that her mother, Sharilia, died. She had just visited her mother’s monument and tomb. It was a grand monument, worthy of Sharilia’s status as one of the most powerful Sith Lords to have lived. Draleeria always felt it was hollow though; unlike other tombs, Draleeria could sense no Dark Side Force Specter. She always made a show about visiting the monument and tomb though, if for no other reason than to make sure none of her enemies followed her afterward. Besides, if anyone was going to challenge her, she'd rather fight there where she didn't actually care if her surroundings were damaged. That tomb ... that monument ... it all meant nothing to her.

Her followers – the power base she inherited from her mother – all thought she came out here to meditate, to distance herself so that they wouldn't see her weak. It was partly true, anyway, she did come here to meditate ... just not for the reasons that her power base thought. When her Chiss mom, Rollishia, died, they had buried her out here ... underneath this very same oak tree. So when her Zabrak mother died, it was only appropriate to bury Sharilia here as well. It was a risk though, as there were plenty of rival Sith Lords who would love nothing more than to desecrate her body. Draleeria had considered cremating her mother's body just to be safe, though ultimately she had decided against it. They hadn't cremated Rollishia's body, so it was only fitting to bury them together.

"Somehow I knew I'd find you here," a familiar voice drew Draleeria out of her reverie.

Normally, Draleeria would have instantly attacked whoever had interrupted her, but no, she knew exactly who she was dealing with. The Sith woman slowly turned, not surprised that she didn't immediately see anyone around her even though she could sense the other person's presence. The sound of a stealth generator deactivating reached her ears, and there she was, Draleeria's sister, Kho'reoxia.

A stranger would never know that the two women were sisters. Kho'reoxia entirely took after their Chiss mother, inheriting none of the Zabrak traits from their Sith mother. Like her, Kho'reoxia had the blue skin and slightly glowing red eyes that all Chiss had, but that's where the similarities ended. The other woman kept her dark blue hair in a high ponytail, and the scar that ran diagonally over her right eye was new. That hadn't been there the last time Draleeria saw her younger sister, all those years ago when they had buried their Chiss mother.

That had been the last time that the two sisters had been face to face, the young Chiss woman seemingly disappearing off the face of the galaxy. Draleeria had tried, countless times, to get in contact with her younger sister, though the younger woman ignored all communication attempts. Of course, Draleeria knew what her sister was doing ... where she had gone off to. As Draleeria had been trained to replace their Zabrak mother on the Dark Council, Kho'reoxia had been trained to replace their Chiss mother as head of the Star Cabal.

"Why weren't you at the funeral?" Draleeria asked.

Kho'reoxia chuckled lightly, "We haven't seen each other in years, and that's the first thing you say?"

The Sith woman felt her hand tighten into a fist, glowing red eyes narrowing ever so slightly, "Don't you dare. You know full well that I made every attempt to contact you; you ignored them all."

"When mom died I had to take over the Star Cabal, I didn't have time for family," the younger woman sneered.

"That's it? That's your excuse?" The Sith woman felt the beginnings of lightning arcing up her arm, "Work was more important than our mother dying?"

"Oh, don't pretend that she cared that I wasn't there," Kho'reoxia snapped.

"Don't start this again, our mother loved us!" Draleeria exclaimed, teeth grinding together as Dark Side energy boiled and churned within her.

"And why shouldn't I?" The Chiss woman hissed, "You were always mother's favorite, the perfect child who could do no wrong!"

Draleeria stomped her foot, the Dark Side Force energy exploding out of her, sending Kho'reoxia flying backward. A flash-bang grenade went off and blinded Draleeria. When the Sith woman's vision returned she was alone ... or, seemingly alone. Reaching out with the Force told Draleeria that her younger sister was still within the vicinity, even if the younger woman was hidden from sight. Fine, if Kho'reoxia wanted to play these games then two could play at them. With a small flick of her wrist, Draleeria cloaked herself in the Dark Side and faded from sight.

"And that's why I was never good enough for mother!" Kho'reoxia's voice echoed around her. "That's why I was always treated like a second-rate child! All because I was unlucky enough to be born without the Force!"

"Is that it?" Draleeria demanded, using the Force to make her own voice echo, "That's why you were always jealous of me?"

"And what if it was?" Draleeria spun on her heel, hand closing around thin air. The Chiss woman's stealth generator deactivated, revealing Draleeria had a hold on her younger sister's wrist. The Sith woman lifted the shroud that obscured her from view, the gleaming vibroknife the younger woman held inches away from Draleeria's face. "You have no idea what it was like. No matter what I did ... no matter the number of commendations ... no matter my skill ... I was never good enough for her," Kho'reoxia snarled, head snapping forward into Draleeria's.

The Sith woman staggered back from the blow, barely avoiding the follow-up punch. The Chiss woman continued her momentum, slashing with her vibroknife. Instead of dodging the attack, Draleeria stomped her foot, sending out a shock wave that knocked the younger woman away. The Chiss woman rolled to her feet, staying low to the ground. "I hated it ... I hated listening to mother going on and on about everything that you did, and I hated hearing her say that I should be more like you!"

"I still loved you. I always reached out no matter what; you were always pushing me away!" Draleeria bellowed, lightning arcing along her body.

"It wasn't enough," Kho'reoxia hissed, "It was never enough!" A smoke bomb detonated; obscuring the younger woman from view.

When the smoke finally cleared, Draleeria was alone again ... and this time she was truly alone. Reaching out with the Force told the Sith woman that there was no other being within the vicinity. The lightning surged around her left arm and with a scream she lashed out. The bolt of lightning arced forward, scorching the ground in front of her. Exhausted Draleeria dropped to her knees, silent tears mixing with the ever falling rain of Dromund Kaas.


End file.
